1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates in general to regulating the level of groundwater in the fields of an agricultural operation and, more particularly, wherein the level of the groundwater in the field is regulated according to a predetermined water table profile for improved crop yields and retention of resources and nutrients.
2. Description of the Prior Art
It is known in the art to use a variety of machines and apparatuses to increase or decrease moisture in the soil used for agrarian purposes. Some of these machines include the use of aquifers, irrigation ditches and canals, use of overhead sprinkler irrigation, terracing for directing the flow of water while maintaining top soil and some moisture in the soil on a hill, and the laying of underground tile lines into which water will drain and flow away from the field.
Tile lines, while effectively routing excess water from the soil have heretofore typically served that singular purpose. Unfortunately, when moisture levels in the season result in a need for more water in the soil, the tile lines typically continue to drain without means to control or adjust the flow. In this manner, efficient water removal by the lines can be detrimental to the crop either by depriving the plants of moisture or by allowing nitrates, phosphates and other nutrients used by plants to flow out of the soil before sufficient time has passed to allow them to break down naturally.
As an improvement over uncontrolled tile lines, drainage systems have been developed that include the use of flow control regulators in the lines in such a way as to manage and regulate the moisture level in the soil. The management is typically based upon seasonal needs and is provided via automatic adjustments of the flow control regulators according to a twelve-month calendar through the use of electric motors that are adapted to open or close flow gates in the flow control regulators and timers that determine the operation of the motors. This type of groundwater control system is described in United States patent to Schafer et al., No. U.S. Pat. No. 6,715,508 B2 issued Apr. 6, 2004 and U.S. patent application Ser. No. 10/758,507 in the name of Schafer et al.
Although water drainage systems that include timer control regulators are a vast improvement over uncontrolled systems, they operate in essentially the same manner regardless as to the type of weather that has occurred and the amount of groundwater in the soil. The present invention is designed to provide a groundwater control system that is preferably actuated in response to a sensing of the groundwater level in the soil to produce a desired groundwater level profile, but the system may also be based on weather forecasts or other conditions that could affect the level of groundwater in the field.